AllMusic
Michael Erlewine stood in a record store in the early 1990s holding a compact disc he believed contained early recordings by Little Richard. He opened the case and discovered it was merely a flaccid latter-day rehash of the original material. This specific disappointment sparked an idea to use computer technology for organizing music metadata. He had already founded a software company called Matrix in 1977 after becoming interested in using computers for his astrological work during the mid-1970s. The frustration with poor labeling on physical media drove him to research how to create a comprehensive guide. In 1990, he established All Music Guide in Big Rapids, Michigan. His goal was to build an open-access database that included every recording since Enrico Caruso gave the industry its first big boost.
The first edition of All Music Guide appeared as a massive 1,200-page reference book published in 1992. It came packaged with a CD-ROM titled All Music Guide: The Best CDs, Albums & Tapes. This initial print version served thousands of artists across all types of music. The platform transitioned to digital formats when the first online version launched in 1994 as a text-based Gopher site. As web browsers became more user-friendly, the service moved to the World Wide Web. Vladimir Bogdanov worked as a database engineer to design the underlying framework for the project. Stephen Thomas Erlewine joined the team as a writer to develop editorial content. By February 1999, the catalog had grown to include 350,000 albums and two million tracks. The staff expanded from just 12 people to 100 employees during this period of rapid growth.
Alliance Entertainment Corp purchased All Music from Michael Erlewine in 1996 for a reported $3.5 million. Erlewine left the company immediately after the sale was completed. Alliance filed for bankruptcy in 1999, and Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Equity Fund acquired its assets. The organization relocated from Big Rapids to Ann Arbor, Michigan later that same year. TiVo Corporation bought the site in late 2007 for $72 million while it was known as Macrovision at the time of the transaction. The company changed its name to Rovi from 2009 until 2016 before selling again. BlinkX purchased AllMusic in 2015, and the entity is now known as RhythmOne. In 2012, the platform removed all information about Bryan Adams per a request from the artist himself. The database currently runs on a combination of MySQL and MongoDB software systems.
Chris Woodstra joined the staff in 1993 as an engineer with encyclopedic knowledge of music. He had previously written for alternative weeklies and fanzines as a record geek. The team developed a list containing 1,400 subgenres of music to define the site utility. This feature allowed users to track styles, genres, and subgenres along with the tone of the music. It also connected data regarding the platforms on which the music was sold. Ernie Smith wrote in a 2016 article for Tedium that the project tracks entire types of music whether massive or tiny like sadcore. The organization published biographies of 30,000 artists alongside 120,000 record reviews. Three hundred essays were written by a hybrid group of historians, critics, and passionate collectors.
Vladimir Bogdanov serves as president and main editor of the All Music Guide series produced by All Media Network. The first edition of The Definitive Guide to Popular Music appeared in 1992 followed by subsequent editions in 1994, 1997, 2001, and 2008. A dedicated guide to Classical Music arrived in 2004 while Country guides began publication in 1997. Electronica received its own definitive guide in 2001 and Hip-hop followed in 2003. Jazz publications started in 1994 with updates appearing in 1996, 1998, and 2002. Rock, Pop, and Soul received their first edition in 1995 with later versions released in 1997 and 2002. Soul music got its own R&B and Soul guide in 2003. Blues enthusiasts found a dedicated volume published initially in 1996 and updated through 2003. Required Listening series books covered Classic Rock in 2007 and Contemporary Country in 2008.
PC Magazine included AllMusic in its Top 100 Classic Websites list during August 2007. The website continues to influence how listeners discover and understand music today. It catalogs more than three million album entries and thirty million tracks of information on musicians and bands. The platform remains owned by RhythmOne since the year 2015. Its ability to connect data intelligently helps users learn about entire types of music regardless of size. The project stands as one of the most ambitious sites of the early-internet era. It serves as a fundamental resource for understanding pop culture history and current trends.
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Common questions
Who founded AllMusic and when was it established?
Michael Erlewine established All Music Guide in Big Rapids, Michigan in 1990. He had previously founded a software company called Matrix in 1977 after becoming interested in using computers for his astrological work during the mid-1970s.
What is the history of ownership changes for AllMusic since its founding?
Alliance Entertainment Corp purchased All Music from Michael Erlewine in 1996 for a reported $3.5 million. TiVo Corporation bought the site in late 2007 while it was known as Macrovision at the time of the transaction, and BlinkX purchased AllMusic in 2015 before the entity became RhythmOne.
How many albums and tracks does AllMusic catalog today?
The platform catalogs more than three million album entries and thirty million tracks of information on musicians and bands. By February 1999, the catalog had already grown to include 350,000 albums and two million tracks.
When did Vladimir Bogdanov join the AllMusic team and what role does he hold now?
Vladimir Bogdanov worked as a database engineer to design the underlying framework for the project when the first online version launched in 1994. He currently serves as president and main editor of the All Music Guide series produced by All Media Network.
Which specific music genres received their own definitive guides between 1992 and 2008?
A dedicated guide to Classical Music arrived in 2004 while Country guides began publication in 1997. Electronica received its own definitive guide in 2001 and Hip-hop followed in 2003, with Jazz publications starting in 1994 and updates appearing in 1996, 1998, and 2002.